For the past few months, I’ve been completely obsessed with Thai flavors. Basil, lemongrass, chili, ginger, lime – I can’t get enough! I’ve been stuffing them into peppers and lettuce wraps, using them to flavor baked chicken wings, and adding them to my salad dressing. It was only a matter of time before my thoughts turned to soup.

The star of this Thai chicken soup is the broth, which I made in a slow cooker. If you don’t have a slow cooker, a regular stock pot will work just as well. The trick is to cook it low and slow, letting it reduce so the flavors concentrate.

I wanted to keep things light and simple, but still ensure that the soup was packing plenty of nutrition, so I decided to skip pasta and use zucchini noodles instead. I love the way the compliment the flavor of the broth, soaking in all of it’s flavor.

I use a paderno spiralizer that I absolutely love, but if you don’t have one you can shred the zucchini lengthwise on the coarse side of a box grater.  The noodles will be a little thinner if you use a grater, so the texture won’t be exactly the same, but they’ll taste just as good.

To serve, I like to take a cue from pho and finish the soup with fresh basil, jalapeno slices and just a touch of sambal olek, a spicy thai chili paste. Let everyone add their own for a fun, customizable experience – and so they can have it be as mild or as spicy as they like.

This Thai Chicken Soup with Zucchinni Noodles recipe first appeared on Food Fanatic, where I contribute recipes as the soup expert.

I don’t know what’s gotten into me, but I’ve been eating chicken wings like a boss lately. They’re just so good, plus they make any occasion seem like a party! It’s also really fun to come up with different flavored sauces to toss them in.

These Baked Thai Peanut Chicken Wings are my latest creation. They’re great for entertaining – a define crowd-pleaser, super simple to whip up, and can even be prepared ahead – but you can also serve them with rice and a green vegetable for an easy and tasty dinner.

To make these baked Thai peanut chicken wings, you’ll start by making a Thai-inspired peanut sauce. This sauce is so good! We had some left over and ended up dipping anything and everything into it. Spring rolls, quinoa crusted chicken fingers, dumplings, celery sticks, a spoon…it’s all good.  Marinate the chicken wings in half of the sauce, and save the rest for dipping – trust me, you’ll want it! (Be sure to set aside your dipping sauce before you add the wings to avoid cross contamination.)

The Thai peanut sauce is really simple and uses ingredients that I always have on hand. The secret to giving it tons of flavor without needing a zillion ingredients is to use Gourmet Garden’s Thai Seasoning Stir-In Paste. I swear by their garlic and ginger pastes, but only recently discovered the Thai seasoning. It’s a mixture of shallot, ginger, lemongrass, coriander, and chili pepper and I’m completely smitten. In addition to these wings, I use it to make Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps, add it to chicken noodle soup, whisk it into homemade salad dressings, and even use it as a condiment on turkey sandwiches.

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Thai Peanut Baked Chicken Wings

Prep Time 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 35 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 1 cup light coconut milk
• ½ cup peanut butter
• 2 Tablespoons Gourmet Garden® Thai Stir-In Paste
• 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 Tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 lime juiced
• 1 pinch salt optional
• 1.5 pounds chicken wings
• 1 Tablespoon Gourmet Garden® Lightly Dried Cilantro

Instructions

• In a mixing bowl, combine the coconut milk, peanut butter, Thai stir-in paste, brown sugar, fish sauce, and lime juice. Mix until smooth. Taste and add salt, if desired.
• Transfer half of the sauce to a large zip-top bag; transfer the other half to a small serving dish. Add the chicken wings to the bag and shake to coat. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Heat the oven to 450ºF. Line a baking sheet with foil and set a baking rack on top.
• Arrange the chicken on the baking rack. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the skin is golden brown and the chicken is cooked through.
• Remove the chicken wings from the oven and sprinkle with cilantro. Serve with reserved Thai peanut sauce.

Notes

Click for Nutrition Information

Last week, someone asked me what I predicted the big food trends of 2016 will be. I thought that was a really fun question! I usually see a ton of articles about it this time of year, but I haven’t seen many at all this time around.

My predictions for the top food trends of 2016 – based solely on my current cravings and the ingredients that have been inspiring me lately – are: 1) meatballs; 2) Thai flavors; 3) whole grains used in interesting ways; and 4) Nordic-inspired cuisine.

I’m drooling just thinking about it – I have a feeling that 2016 is going to be a very delicious year.

I’ve been making these Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps a lot lately. They’re super easy, versatile, and jam-packed with flavor. They started as something that I just threw together on a busy weeknight, but I eventually realized I should probably photograph them and share them here. I know you’ll love them just as much as I do!

The first time I made these Thai lettuce wraps I used ground pork. The flavor was incredible, but they were a little greasy. Since then I’ve found that I prefer to use turkey which, to my surprise, has just as much flavor. I season them with Thai seasoning, fish sauce, and a little chili paste, then top them with cashews, scallions, and lime juice. If you like a little extra crunch, you can also add some chopped water chestnuts into the turkey.

This recipe comes together in practically no time, so it’s perfect for weeknights. If you’re looking to make things even easier on yourself, you can also prepare the filling on Sunday and then reheat it later in the week. It also freezes well for a convenient make-ahead meal (if you don’t have fresh lettuce, the filling is also delicious over rice.)

For more lettuce wrap ideas, try: Chipotle Chicken Lettuce Wraps // Ground Chicken and Eggplant Lettuce Wraps // Avocado Tuna Lettuce Wraps // Duck and Shiitake Lettuce Wraps

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Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Lauren Keating

Equipment

• Thai Stir-In Seasoning

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ½ onion chopped (about 1 cup)
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 4 ounces crimini mushrooms chopped (about 1 cup)
• 2 cups cole slaw mix
• ½ bell pepper diced (about 1/2 cup)
• 4 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons Thai seasoning paste
• 1 tablespoons chili sauce optional
• ¼ cup water chestnuts optional
• 1 lime juiced
• Green leaf lettuce chopped cashews, and scallions for serving

Instructions

• Heat the olive oil in a large pan set over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute.
• Add the ground turkey and cook until browned, breaking the meat up with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Add the mushrooms, cole slaw mix, bell pepper, fish sauce, Thai seasoning, chili sauce (if using) and water chestnuts (if using). Stir until combined. Cook 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are cooked through. Remove from heat and stir in the lime juice.
• Serve the turkey filling in lettuce leaves. Top with cashews and scallions, as desired.

Notes

Click here for nutrition information

Shawn and I eat at my parents’ house so I don’t usually have leftovers to deal with. I wish that I did! I wouldn’t turn them into something else though – I’d just eat Thanksgiving dinner again and again until they were gone. Or at least until all that was left as turkey, which I’d throw into a big pot of soup or cassoulet.

Ok, I’d do something with the carrots. They seem to be a staple at every holiday meal, but I don’t know if anyone actually eats them, so they’re usually left over in massive quantities. (Why would you when there are so many other amazing vegetables, like roast Brussels sprouts with cranberries, to choose from or when you can just fill up on stuffing?) They’re boring enough the first time around, but reheated? They’d probably just get shoved to the back of the fridge where I’d forget about them until trash night.

These whipped carrots are delicious enough to make in their own right, but if you have leftovers to start from you’re already halfway there! Just throw them into the blender with some coconut milk and whip them until they’re nice and smooth (it only takes a few seconds), then top them with sriracha butter that’s spicy enough to balance out the sweetness of the carrots without being super hot.

These whipped carrots definitely have an Asian influence, but they’re pretty versatile. Try them with roast chicken thighs (or leftover turkey) or a piece of grilled fish for an easy and healthy weeknight meal.

Soup season is here! Soup season is here!

This creamy Thai corn chowder is the perfect way to bridge the gap between summer and fall. It has a fresh, almost floral flavor that highlights the last of summer’s sweet corn, and a thick velvety texture that’s super cozy and luxurious. I love it! And I love it even more knowing that it can be on the table in just about a half an hour (and that 20 minutes of that it just simmering the broth!)

I’ve been participating in #SundaySupper for a few months now and I absolutely love it. Now that I’ve learned the ropes, I decided to join in the other part of the movement: #WeekdaySupper.

Just like it sounds, #WeekdaySupper is all about quick, easy meals that inspire people to venture into the kitchen during the week. Finding that inspiration (and energy!) is definitely something that I struggle with personally. I love to cook, but I still can’t muster up the energy to make dinner after work. I can’t even imagine what it must be like for people who don’t like to cook. I’d probably end up eating take out every night.

This soup though? It’s kind of hard to come up with an excuse not to make it. It’s one of the easiest things I’ve made in a while, but it definitely doesn’t taste it.

You start by making a quick broth out of corn cobs. If that sounds complicated, don’t worry – it couldn’t be easier and the results are well worth it. The process extracts every bit of flavor from the corn cobs and gives the soup its intense corn flavor.

The broth and potato gets combined with coconut milk, fresh corn and red curry paste, then whipped up in the blender. The coconut thickens up like whipped cream and gives this soup an amazing texture. Then you just throw in the remaining corn and some shrimp.

That’s all there is to it!

(I like to bake up some tater tots while the soup simmers. I don’t know why, but they go really, really well together.)

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Thai Corn Chowder

Course Soups and Stews

Servings 4 servings

Calories 217kcal

Author Lauren Keating

Ingredients

• 3 ears corn on the cob
• 6 cup water
• 1 medium potato peeled and diced
• 1 can 15oz light coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste
• ¼ cup loosely packed cilantro
• ½ pound medium shrimp
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1 lime juiced
• Optional: thinly sliced jalapeno for garnish

Instructions

• Cut the corn kernels away from the cob. Add the cobs, 6 cups of water, and the diced potato to a soup pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Discard the cobs.
• Stir in coconut milk, red curry paste, and half of the reserved corn. Simmer for 5 minutes. Transfer to a blender or food processor and process into a smooth puree.
• Return the puree to the pot. Add the remaining corn, cilantro, and shrimp. Simmer until shrimp are cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir in fish sauce and lime juice. Garnish with jalapeno slices, if desired.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 217kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 120mg | Sodium: 1152mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g